Morality / Ethics
Morality / Ethics Thank God, we can finally, once again, stand firmly and speak boldly and prophetically about right and wrong! From a sacred evolutionary (creatheistic) perspective, something is right if it honors/fosters the health and wellbeing of the larger and smaller holons of our existence and/or furthers Creation's ability to experience love, cooperation, and interdependence at ever-increasing scale and evolvability. A thing is wrong if it does otherwise. --- In oral cultures (before writing), right and wrong were what promoted cooperation and wellbeing among members of the community, were discerned by tribal or village elders, and were embedded within (and taught through) stories, rituals, and rites of passage. In written cultures, right and wrong tended to become identified by whether or not something aligned with written laws and guidelines held sacred by the community. And also whether or not it promoted cooperation and wellbeing at the level of tribe, religious group, or nation. Today, thanks to print, electronics, and computers, we've come to see that the wellbeing of every individual, corporation, and nation-state is integrally connected to the health and wellbeing of the entire body of life, which is why right and wrong are now being identified in a larger, more comprehensive way than ever before. --- EVOLUTIONARY DIRECTIONALITY reveals God's will for us collectively and personally, and shows that the this-world significance of our tradition (and religion in general) is far greater than previous generations could have possibly known. Because evolutionary directionality reveals God's will for Creation as a whole (greater cooperation, interdependence, and capacity for love at ever increasing scale and evolvability) it gives us a whole new way of appreciating God's love, God's grace, the timeless wisdom of scripture, and the importance of what God has been revealing through science over the last few centuries. It also allows us to be wholly and passionately Christ-centered while also valuing the insights and contributions of other spiritual traditions. AS A SPECIES, God's will for us is to so embody the values of which Jesus lived and taught, co-creatively and collectively, that we, by grace, become Christ's return. "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in heaven" cannot possibly mean less than allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us as a species in nurturing a symbiotic, mutually enhancing relationship with both the larger body of life (nature) and our own creations (arts, technology, social systems, etc), and doing so to the glory of God — that is, honoring the wisdom of the Whole. Our Great Work, collectively, is to co-create a just and equitable system of local, regional, and global governance in which individuals, corporations, and nation states benefit from cooperating and serving the common good, and pay for not cooperating or harming the common good. That is, where there are truly effective incentives for doing the right thing and equally effective disincentives for lying, cheating, polluting, dominating, or otherwise doing the wrong thing. AS INDIVIDUALS, God's will for each of us is to be spiritually transformed. That is, to be free (saved) from bondage to sin, guilt, self-absorption, and addiction, so that we can truly experience the heavenly "peace that passes all understanding" eternally, here, now, in the midst of the joys and tragedies of life, and be of real service to the world. Said in a more traditional way, God's will, personally, is for each of us to be "born again"; that is, to know freedom (salvation) from the dictates of our animal nature (what got us here) so that we are free to serve the common good, by re-incarnating Christ-like values. The good news — in fact, the really great news — is that the Whole of Reality is supporting us. We don't have to figure it out ourselves, don't have to go it alone, and, in a very real sense, can't even get it wrong. Humbling ourselves and being teachable is the key. Throughout time, God (Reality) has consistently transformed our sins, mistakes, and shortcomings, individually and collectively, to further the process of evolutionary creativity in the direction of increasing cooperation, compassion, and interdependence at ever-wider scale and evolvability. Grace abounds! Resources "Let's Stop Trivializing God, the Universe, and Our Role in Evolution!" - foundational essay